Well, now that I'm actually in NJ for Passover, let's take some time to go over some recent cast recordings I've found in my mail.
1. MARTIN SHORT: FAME BECOMES ME - Are you kidding?? They actually recorded this?? 28 tracks, at that. I could barely make it past track 9 before I turned it off, never to be heard on my IPOD again. Martin Short has the kind of energy that would be perfect for a musical comedy - but a real one.
2. COMPANY - Yes, it's missing the volume of strings and brass that complimented the original orchestrations, but John Doyle's (brilliant, beautiful, bold, ect) Broadway revival also makes a very well done cast recording. At that, it actually makes a better listen than the recording of his SWEENEY TODD. It also preserves far more dialogue than on previous COMPANY albums.
3. BROADWAY MUSICALS OF 1929 - Scott Siegel's Broadway By the Year concerts tend to appear in cast album form about two years after each passes. This actually marks the first of such albums where I actually also attended the concert. They are all similar in format - Siegel, as at the show, is heard providing commentary, historical fun facts and even some serious dramaturgy, all the while a talented cast of six to ten Broadway actors do marvelous work with a treasure trove of musical theater history.
4. THE REMASTERED SONDHEIM COLLECTION - SWEENEY TODD, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, INTO THE WOODS - The original cast album of MERRILY is possibly my favorite cast album in the world, and the original SWEENEY TODD could run a close second. In remastered form, these albums have never sounded sharper, particularly in the orchestrations. I highly recommend them!